New website in development!

Visit our new website:

http://www.greenpathventures.org.uk

Amazon Trip

Several hundred bites later John, our manager is back from the Amazon!

Here John writes a little bit about the trip:

“What a fantastic time I had, really enjoyed it. I don’t like flying though and it did take a total journey time of 33 hours to get to Iquitos, then a 3 hour coach and then finally a 6 hour boat trip to get into the jungle.

We didn’t pack much; no tents, sleeping bag, spare clothes or food. This was a survival course and everything we ate and drank, we had to find ourselves, with the help of our guides. Among the delicacies we did consume; snake, sloth, catfish, heart of palm, root of yucca and water from the water vine. The worst bites I got were from the Fire Ants, tiny creatures with a burning bite that feels like, yep, you’ve guessed it; being burnt! Lasts for about 20 minutes”.

If you’d like John to speak to your club, school or group please get in touch and we can arrange a slideshow and he can bring along his equipment for people to see.

Gazette article

Welcome…to the new website for Greenpath Ventures!

Find out more about Greenpath Ventures and what we do by taking a look at the pages menu under the image above. If and when we have news to share with you we will add a post to our blog. Featured here is the article written for the Linking Hands magazine produced by Involving Essex – sadly no longer running.

If you would like to write about your experience from a Greenpath Ventures activity then please leave a comment on our testimonials page.

“Stuff” in the Woods – Originally printed in a magazine summer of 2009

If, like me, the thought of going out in the woods to do “stuff” outdoorsy makes your stomach churn and double flip – read on!

Some time ago we were invited to go out with John Wills to Danbury park and I wasn’t really looking forward to it. If I can’t wear heels I’m generally not really into it. I’m glad I went though because what a great day! Just being out in the fresh air was refreshing and John showed us different plants you can eat, how to make rope out of stinging nettles and we even had a lesson on making fire! We were all wanting more. John Wills is the manager of Greenpath Ventures; set up with the main aim of increasing self-esteem and confidence for disadvantaged adults using a variety of activities around bushcraft. Bushcraft? It’s a term used to describe the skills and know-how needed to survive and be comfortable in the outdoors. Now a registered charity, Greenpath Ventures has successfully secured funding for 3 years and has already beaten their target to have contact with 260 people in the first year – to 500!!

John and his team have worked with more organisations than they had planned to as well – working with Colchester Mind, HEAL, CHUMS, Involving Essex, Open Road, Unites, local schools, Beavers, U3A and The Haven. The Striders* project, funded by Sport Relief.

Greenpath Ventures have also received funding from Awards for All for equipment and training and some from Allen Lane for volunteer recruitment and training.

It doesn’t stop their either! They are currently in the process of developing more projects, all featuring volunteers. They are in the process of planning a Heritage Lottery Fund project where they will be going into local schools and community groups to offer services.

For further information contact greenpathventures@hotmail.co.ukor go and check out the pages of this website.

*please note that this project is no longer running. This article was written in 2009 and printed in the Involving Essex (also no longer running) magazine Linking Hands.